The Story

This morning I laid the girls down and slipped out the front door in my sweatpants. Chuck was about to get ready for work so I decided to capitalize on him still being home and sneak in a little alone time.

This morning Chuck said, “I have an Autumn hangover.” I think she’s breaking in some new teeth and has been crying “mamamamama” in a deep and loud voice in the middle of the night. Poor Charlie just rolls over and tries to get back to sleep to get in her tight 12-13 hours. She’s not quite herself these days either. The unusual nights have made way for unusual days. It makes getting up early challenging and thus starting the days already feeling behind.

Sometimes in the midst of days and nights like this the brain starts to feel like mashed potatoes and it’s easy to loose perspective of the bigger picture at play. Chuck had community night last night so I crawled into bed early and had a little quiet time before he got home. The Father faithfully reminded me of the story He is writing with our seemingly small lives.

As I sit in Starbucks and spend time in the Psalms, I am reflecting a bit on the beautiful story He has and is writing. There has been bliss, pain, and redemption. There has been mystery, confusion, and many times where I have had to tell my soul what’s true when my emotions screamed a different story.

He’s taken me to places beyond what I could ask or imagine. I’ve lived on both coasts, something this Texas girl certainly didn’t see coming. I’ve traipsed about on 5 of the 7 continents. I met a Canadian in California and married him in Texas. I’ve endured and overcome the heartache of infertility. I’ve miraculously conceived and carried twins to term after going into labor at 27 weeks. I’ve found time and time again that the things I think I am running behind on seem to happen right on time. Can you relate?

I am just somewhere in the middle of this story. There is much more to come. There is bliss and beauty and brokenness that awaits me.

And I bet you are too. I bet you are living in the mixture of fulfilled dreams and mystery.

I encourage you to grab a warm drink (is it cold where you are too?) and maybe lite a candle and reflect a bit on your story thus far. It’s easy to get caught up in the challenges of today and forget how far you’ve come and how beautiful your story truly is.

Let’s not miss the beauty of the story He’s writing in the mush and mundane of today. He’s in the business of making beautiful things and I would confidently bet He’s making beautiful things in and through you. Look how far you’ve come!

The Psalms have been a lifeline to me lately, and I stumbled across this one today.

“You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me.”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭139:5

Well I am back home now and there is laundry to be folded so I’ll leave you here with this song by Housefires that so aptly applies to our topic.